


The Lighthouse Job

by meils121



Category: Leverage
Genre: Gen, Lighthouses, Treasure Hunting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-17
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-09-21 12:55:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17044136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meils121/pseuds/meils121
Summary: Armed guards, a high-tech security system, and a hard-to-reach location.  Nothing new - except this job is on an island, and the target is a lighthouse.





	The Lighthouse Job

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BurningTea](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BurningTea/gifts).



          The Burnsley lighthouse is out on the point of the island, overlooking a rocky outlook and a long, sheer drop down to the ocean below.  The island itself has only one house, a big old Nantucket mansion tucked between the beach and bluffs.  It’s home to a reclusive billionaire - a paranoid one, by the looks of it.  The security system alone would have cost several hundred thousand dollars.

          “Looks haunted.”  Parker says as she studies the photos.  “I like it.  Why don’t we have a haunted beach house?”

          “It’s not haunted.”  Eliot corrects.  “But it’s got more security than most banks.”

          “Suspicious.”  Parker says.  She frowns.  “Are those armed guards at the dock?”

          “Yeah, and posted along the whole damn island.”  Hardison says, pointing at another photo.  “It’s a fortress, plain and simple.”

          Parker looks up at the map of the island Hardison has projected on the big screen.  “Well, we have to gain access somehow.”  She says.  “We just have to find a place we can land a boat without anyone noticing.”

          Eliot shakes his head.  “The only safe place to land is the dock.”  He says.  “The rest is all rock and cliff faces.”

          Parker frowns.  “How are we going to get to the lighthouse, then?”

          “I’m starting to think we can’t.”  Hardison says.  “Even if I shut the security system down - which is a big old maybe, by the way - we’ve got more guards than Eliot can take on his own.  No offense.”

          Eliot shrugs.  “None taken.  I’m not crazy enough to think I can fight that many guys at once.”

          “We can’t not do this.”  Parker says.  “We _have_ to figure out a way.  I’m not letting them win.”  

          “Fine.”  Eliot pulls the map back in front of him.  One day he’ll figure out why he’s helpless to refuse anything Parker or Hardison ask of him, but right now he’s got other things to worry about.  Mainly, landing a boat on a very boat-unfriendly island.

          “If it’s not the dock, it has to be this cove.”  Eliot taps a small piece of land maybe two hundred yards from the lighthouse.  “And that’s only if we get the tides right.”

          Parker pats his hand.  “I knew you could figure it out.”  She says.  And maybe that would sound condescending coming from anyone else, but he knows Parker means it as true praise, so he just smiles.  

 

\---------

 

          Eliot holds the small sailboat steady as Parker climbs onboard.  “Come on, Hardison.”

          “Nuh-uh.  Nope.  No way.”  The other man crosses his arms.  “When you said boat, I thought you meant something with a motor.”

          “We’ll be fine.  Now get on.”

          “It’s only a little unsafe.”  Parker adds in what - knowing her - is supposed to be comforting.  “And that’s only because of the weather.”

          “So why aren’t we waiting for it to stop raining?”

          “You know why.”  Eliot says.  “Come on, Hardison, it’s not often the weather cooperates with what we need.  We have to take advantage of the rain.”  If he’s honest, he doesn’t particularly like doing this in the rain either, but given what the plan calls for, the rain really only helps solidify their cover.  

          “Fine.”  Hardison grumbles, but he lets Eliot help him onto the sailboat.

          It’s a small boat, meant at most for one or two people.  Three is a stretch, especially once they get out of the bay and out into open water.  The waves are just on the edge of too dangerous, and for a brief moment Eliot considers calling this off.  But it’s a well-constructed boat - no worries of anything falling apart - and soon enough he’s adjusted to the up and down of the waves.  Hardison’s looking a little green, but that’s not completely out of the ordinary for anything that requires him to be this far from his computers.  Or, to be fair, outside.

          “C’mere.”  Eliot says to Parker.  “You’re going to have to make it believable that you know how to operate this thing.”  He shows her how to steer the boat and how to catch the wind.  Once she has the hang of it, they head towards the island.

          The cove is on the far side of the island, and so they have to take a looping route to get to it as to not look suspicious.  When they’re far enough out that they’re out of range of any cameras but close enough that Eliot can still make it safely to shore, he hands the control of the boat over to Parker, grabs the waterproof backpack filled with supplies, and slips into the water.

          “Straight ahead.  Be careful of rocks!”  He yells over the roar of the waves.  Parker gives him a thumbs up.  Eliot treads water for a minute, watching them to make sure they have the hang of things.  Once he’s sure they’ll land safely, he starts heading towards a more rocky part of the island. 

          Eliot’s soaked to the bone and shivering by the time he hauls himself out of the ocean and onto land.  There’s a small stretch of ground before the cliff face, and really, Parker should be the one doing this except for the fact he might get caught by cameras and needs to be able to fight his way through if needed.  

 

\----------------------

 

          “Help!”  Hardison waves his hands wildly at the approaching guards.  “Help!”

          “This is private property!”  A guard yells, but when they approach he slowly lowers his weapon.  “What happened?”

          Parker climbs out of the sailboat, which is now tipped on its side, its sail hanging funny.  “We crashed.”  She says.  “Got caught in the storm.”

          The guard studies them for a minute.  “Come on.”  He says.  “Let’s get you somewhere warm until we can get a boat to take you back to the mainland.”

          As they’re led up the beach and towards the main house, Hardison whispers over comms, “We’re in.”

          Halfway across the island, Eliot hoists himself over the edge of the cliff and onto stable ground.  “Headed towards the lighthouse now.”  He says.  “This thing better actually be waterproof, Hardison.”

          He doesn’t get an answer - not that he really expected one, since this has been a bit of a sore point between them ever since that con years ago when Eliot ended up in the harbor and his comms shorted.

          The lighthouse itself is just as heavily guarded as the rest of the island.  “Any time now.”  Eliot hisses after two guards walk just feet away from his hiding spot.  

          Back across the island, Parker and Hardison have been led into a small guardhouse near the main house.  They’re given some towels to dry off, and one guard stays with them while another heads across the room to radio someone on the mainland.  

          “Get ready.”  Parker says under her breath to Hardison.  Then she screams.

          Every guard in the room rushes to her, demanding to know what’s wrong.  Between gulping breaths and heaving sobs, Parker announces her ring has gone missing - fallen off, surely, when they washed ashore.  It’s not a great distraction, but it’ll do.  At least, it gives Hardison just enough time to slip a USB into the mainframe. 

          “Go.” Hardison says.  

          Eliot ducks under a branch and heads for the lighthouse.  The security cameras on this part of the island are all on a loop now, hiding his movement from the guards monitoring the cameras.  

          The lighthouse looms above him, an eerie sight in the rain and wind.  Eliot waits just long enough for the next guard patrol to walk by before slipping inside the lighthouse, glad to be out of the rain for just a few moments.  His target is up the three flights of stairs.  He’s got maybe a minute to make it up there before the next set of guards comes by. 

          Exactly 48 seconds later, Eliot is back out in the rain, his bag a little heavier.  “Meet me by the boat.”  He says.

          It takes him five minutes to get across the island undetected, and by that time Parker and Hardison have arrived at the beach where they had landed and are righting the sailboat.  

“Not the most elegant exit.”  Hardison grouches as they steer the boat out into the open ocean.  “They’ll be sending a boat out after us any minute.”

          “Did you erase the footage of us?”  Eliot asks instead of answering.

          “Yeah, of course.  Once the loop ended, I programmed a virus to erase the last hour of footage from the cameras.”  Hardison says.  “We might as well be ghosts.”

          “Spooky.”  Parker says.  “I like it.”

 

\-------------------

 

          Back on the mainland, Eliot changes into dry clothes and gives in and pulls on a giant cable knit sweater that Parker had insisted on buying him when they arrived in town earlier that week.  Parker immediately wraps herself around him in a giant hug.

          “You’re soft.”  She says.  “You should wear these more often.”

          “Parker -”  Eliot says.  “I need a free hand to call Nate and Sophie.”

          “Don’t worry, I got this.”  Hardison sets down three mugs of warm apple cider on the table and then grabs his laptop.  It only takes a couple of seconds for him to video chat Nate and Sophie.

          Sophie raises an eyebrow when she sees them.  “Well?”  She says. 

          Eliot holds up a small plaque.  “Proof we stole something from the Burnsley Lighthouse.”  He says.  “That puts us ahead.”

          Nate clears his throat.  “Temporarily.”  He says.  “Sophie and I are still going to win this scavenger hunt.”  

          Parker grins at him.  “You can try.” 

 


End file.
